HB 4187 HB 4345
By Rachel Coffman By Dr. Rahul Gupta
FIREARMS AT WORK
MEDICAL CANNABIS
SENATE: 32-1 HOUSE: 87-11 SENATE: PASSED HOUSE: DIED
With the passage of House Bill (HB) 4187, known as the Busi-
ness Liability Protection Act, West Virginia became one of 20
states prohibiting both public and private employers from es-
tablishing no firearm policies on employer-owned parking lots.
HB 4187 was heavily supported by the National Rifle Asso-
ciation and the West Virginia Citizens Defense League, which
argued the bill allows more protection for employers. The bill
was heavily opposed by many due to workplace safety con-
cerns and intrusion on private property rights.
The business community and many delegates expressed
concern about the constitutionality of requiring religious or-
ganizations to adhere to the bill’s provisions, while the West
Virginia Manufacturers Association, West Virginia Business
& Industry Council, West Virginia Chamber of Commerce,
aviation institutions and other businesses suggested the state’s
manufacturing facilities should be able to retain their current
policies prohibiting firearms on-site due to hazardous and
flammable materials that could pose a safety risk if ignited.
Language to address both of these concerns was proposed but
was not adopted.
The bill was signed into law on March 21, 2018. Signed into law in 2017, Senate Bill (SB) 386, the West Vir-
ginia Medical Cannabis Act, allows patients registered with a
physician and the Department of Health and Human Resources
to use medical cannabis and buy it from regulated dispensaries.
In 2018, the Legislature debated several changes to the act,
including increasing the number of grower, processer and dis-
pensary permits issued; authorizing the vertical integration of
medical cannabis organizations; allowing medical cannabis to
be grown outdoors by licensed growers; authorizing the pos-
session and smoking of medical cannabis by approved persons;
repealing the physician registration requirement; and autho-
rizing medical cannabis sales in edible and plant-based forms.
House Bill (HB) 4345 amended SB 386 to include several
recommendations from the Medical Cannabis Advisory Board.
The most significant was a provision authorizing the state trea-
surer’s office to designate a credit union for medical cannabis
banking functions. Without this amendment, many banking
vendors are unwilling to handle permit fees generated by the
program because the possession, sale and use of marijuana is
still illegal under federal law. The Senate passed HB 4345, but
the bill died in the House.
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SPRING 2018
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